a peek inside the fishbowl

In honour of Kindness Week here in Ottawa I’d like to talk a bit about smiling. I am also issuing a challenge for myself (but I won’t be getting to that part until tomorrow).

One of the best pieces of parenting advice I’ve ever read is to smile at your children like you mean it. Give them a million watts when they walk in the door next time. Combine it with a warm embrace and see what happens. It makes a huge difference.

I try to remember this advice because (a) kids deserve to be smiled at and (b) I’m not a natural smiler. In fact, I’m somewhat self-conscious about it because I’m one of those people whose mouth makes a natural frown. And I think it’s only getting worse as I get older. It bothers me. One day I’m going to be an elderly lady, sitting by the pool in some hot tropical location and the servers aren’t going to want to come near me because I look like such an old grump. And I won’t get any fruity drinks in my golden years! See? Tragic.

I can have a totally blank and neutral expression on my face, feeling no emotion whatsoever, and the corners of my lips will be pointing downward. It’s something I worry about, and I blame my seventh grade French teacher.

(This is so embarrassing. I can’t believe I’m writing about this. But here I am!  Tra la la!)

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This is something I think about a lot:

• I only have one body.
• My body needs to last a long time.
• I should take care of my body the best I can. Therefore it stands to reason that I should be feeding it the best kind of food I can.

Right?

I want to take a minute to welcome a new patron to the Fishbowl: Scratch Kitchen. If Scratch seems seem familiar to you. It’s because I’ve written about them before in a very long and ranty post about frozen food here.

To summarize: Scratch Kitchen makes healthy and delicious meals in a commercial-grade kitchen, packages them in heat & serve containers, and then delivers them to your home. I love this concept. If you are a busy person who doesn’t have the time or the energy (or the gumption!) to whip up a healthy dinner seven days a week (and I’m willing to bet this describes 90% of us!) and want the added convenience that comes with pulling something out of the freezer … well, this is for you.

I’ve been delaying this posting because I’ve been busy sampling food from Scratch and waiting for the announcment of the new menu. And it’s up! Chef Sean Murphy has developed some new dishes to warm our tummies, which is great, because this time of year it’s the kind of thing I really crave.

What’s exciting for me is that these are the kinds of meals I usually wouldn’t bother to cook myself AND they also come in single servings. For Mark, who works downtown, it’s like bringing a home-cooked meal for lunch. Healthy AND fast AND cheaper than lunch at the Lone Star (or wherever!).

I really like how they lay it out on the Scratch website:

At Scratch Kitchen, we prepare all of your meals in small batches out of our commercial-grade kitchen. We use locally sourced and, organic ingredients whenever possible and we don’t add any preservatives, or additives, and we go easy on the salt. Our menu includes vegetarian and gluten-free dishes. We planned the menu for the global “foodie”, but we also saved some comfort foods for those days when you just want some down home cooking.

Scratch Kitchen meals aren’t just for time-strapped families. Individuals from all walks of life, from older family members who may not have the means to prepare good meals for themselves, to work-hard, play-hard singles who don’t have the time to cook yet want to eat well, will appreciate our single portion servings.

I think that sums it up rather nicely.

The new menu includes:

Thai Beef and Vegetable Red Curry
Canadian beef, red peppers, eggplant, potatoes, mushrooms and onions Thai basil, lemongrass, galangal and chilis in a Thai coconut red curry. Mark and I both tried this and we loved the flavour, which had a spicy kick we both really liked. We served it with rice and it made a great meal.

(Do you what I REALLY liked about it? The ingredients. I recognized every single one. And it’s gluten-free. I know that’s something a lot of you are looking for.)

Italian Three Cheese and Meat Lasagna
Layers of pasta in imported tomato sauce, stuffed with a blend of ricotta, mozzarella, and cottage cheeses, and ground Canadian beef. Mark brought a lunch-sized portion to work and RAVED about it. RAVED. I am very sad I didn’t get to try it.

Steamed Atlantic Salmon and Wild Rice Medley
Steamed fresh Atlantic salmon and vegetables in a Vietnamese-inspired vinaigrette over a bed of wild rice. Once again, Mark brought this one for lunch and really liked it. NONE FOR ME. *grumble*

Sweet Potato Casserole
Whipped sweet potato, Maker’s Mark Bourbon, and Muscovado sugar. This was a popular dish from their Christmas menu that they decided to keep. It’s waiting for us in the freezer (we haven’t tried it yet) but I am really excited about it. I LOVE SWEET POTATO.

Thank you Scratch! Your support and patronage is appreciated very much. As for the rest of you, do have a wee roam around the Scratch website when you have a sec. I bet you will find something that tempts you. :)

A few things:

1. 1) If you live in the Ottawa area you must enter this giveaway for a season’s pass to Saunders Farm (that is, if you haven’t already). The season’s pass is a superduper value for families. You want this!
2. 2) Mark doesn’t know this yet, but I am SO making this side table… even if I have to chop down a tree to do it. But I would prefer if I didn’t have to resort to such drastic measures, so if you have a spare tree trunk please let me know. (I’m not kidding.)
3. 3) I went to a fabulous event hosted by Entrepreneurial Moms Ottawa last night. Are you familiar with the EMO? (On FB here.) The event was at HUSH (I love HUSH!) and Paula Pyne of Uplift Consulting was the featured speaker. I was so inspired I practically floated away. It’s all still very much lodged in my brain. I must think on it all some more.
4. 4) I haven’t had time to dwell on it very much here but we’re meeting with Architect D again next week. It’s not 100%, but eep! At some point I am going to need to tell the people involved that I’m blogging our reno. Suggestions of talking points most welcome.

Do you remember the bathroom discussion? I have read all of your comments and thought a LOT about our bathroom usage and the winner is: FAMILY BATHROOM. Also, separate commode.

I am setting a trend here, I just know it.

BTW, I actually had to barter with Mark in order for him to agree to the Family Bathroom. Any guesses as to what I had to give? :)

Right now I’m obsessing about kitchens. I know I’m getting ahead of myself, but I have been flipping though my “cut out” binder lately and realized that my five years worth of kitchen clippings are all identical. (That’s a good thing I think.)

It should be spectacularly beautiful, warm and inviting, easy to clean and keep clean.

Like this and this and this one.

My wish list:

• White white white and light light light
• A breakfast island with informal seating, some storage and a mini sink. Glass pendants overhead.
• Minimal upper cabinetry. A combination of floating shelves, and maybe a glass-fronted cabinet or two. I’d like to be able to put stuff away into drawers or in the hitherto non-existent …
• PANTRY. We don’t have one!
• Hardwood floors (a continuation of what we already have in the rest of the house)
• I’m paralyzed by countertops. I’d like something deep black, but I also like stainless steel, and the idea of butcher block insets. I also like concrete. And glass. (See? I’m a mess.)
• A big gas range and proper exhaust. I covet Wolf stoves but I may need to win a small lottery first. I’d love a six-burner with a grill down the middle. (!)
• Touchless faucets (!)
• White subway tile, maybe a huge panel of sea-glass-green coloured glass behind the stove
• a proper place for garbage sorting, which probably might have to include a compost.

So I need to ask: is your kitchen in need of a reno too? If so, what’s on your wishlist? Do you have a new kitchen? What do you love about it? I need your ideas!